Children of Light
by Wormhole
Summary: Darkness is approaching… -This story is roughly based on The Fifth Element film.-
1. Teaser Darkness Is Approaching

**Children of Light**

**Teaser - _Darkness Is Approaching_**

Sitting in the co-pilot seat Ronon caught site of John yawning at the controls; he had been flying the puddle jumper, four hours straight with no rest. Atlantis was still another two hours away at best. He was just about to try and persuade him to switch places with McKay and get some sleep when Teyla pointed something out on the view screen.

"Why are the stars disappearing?"

John couldn't see anything abnormal; at first every star looked the same, yet he had never known Teyla to misjudge things by appearance and studied the void of space carefully.

"There." Instructed Rodney from behind John's seat.

John and Ronon followed his gaze and saw the small blackness of space that was slowly expanding into nothing.

Subconsciously Teyla recited a prophecy. "It is said among my people that; when darkness falls, the Children of Light will destroy it." The sudden audience didn't surprise her, Rodney looked extremely baffled.

"Children of Light?"

"Yes. We believe the prophecy refers to the descendants of the Ancients…"

John didn't like the direction in which the prediction was heading. "Meaning us?"

Teyla nodded, seemingly unsure. "That would be my guess too, if the story turns out to be true? Then, this is not the first time it has appeared."

"How high is the threat we face, if the darkness continues spreading?" Asked John.

"Worlds and galaxies will burn. Until there is nothing left."

**TBC?**

**Interested in more???? Please read and review!!!**


	2. Chapter 1 A Weapon Against Evil

**Thank you for the reviews -** Fitzroy, Kit-SGA, Erin87, jodz92 and mtee1958.

Enjoy:).

**Chapter Two - A Weapon Against Evil**

From the command chair of the Daedalus, Colonel Caldwell watched the view screen, as they neared the newly discovered space hazard.

"-Anything yet?"

Novak double-checked her readings. Even though the alien mater appeared much larger then originally described by Sheppard's team, it still wasn't registering. "No. Sir."

"Send out a probe."

The probe was launched; Caldwell hadn't expected it to vaporize in close proximity to it.

With a baffled look, Novak turned round to face him. "Probe destroyed Sir."

"Contact Atlantis."

After a few minutes wait, they got a response.

"Dr Weir on the line Sir."

"No results from the probe Dr. Weir." In response to his call, Dr Weir's voice echoed around the hull of the bridge.

"_So you don't know what this is either?"_

"Not yet Doctor. But it does appear to be getting bigger.

"– _Recommendations?"_

"My philosophy is shoot first and ask questions later. I don't like uninvited guests and I have been given clearance to use force when necessary."

There was a pause. Before Teyla's voice came online.

"_Colonel. Imagine for a moment that this thing is not anything that can be identified, because it prefers not to be. Wherever there is life it brings death. Because it is evil, absolute evil._

"-One more reason to shoot first Teyla."

"_Evil begets evil, Colonel. Shooting will only make it stronger."_

"I appreciate your concern, but I have a job to do. Dr. Weir."

"_It's your call Colonel."_

"Ma'am."

Caldwell already knew his responsibilities and carried them out. "Fire weapons."

A barrage of weapons was launched. But, like probe, they disintegrated on impact.

"Sir. Object is changing shape!" Novak shouted, as the mass black cloud lit up like a ball of fire.

"Fire again!"

--

Back on Atlantis, everyone in the briefing room listened to the transmissions; up to the point, contact was lost with the Daedalus. It ended with a loud crackling noise in the background.

--

Elsewhere in the Pegasus galaxy, onboard a Wraith hive ship, Michael woke with the sudden awareness of darkness approaching.

--

With no word from the Daedalus, Elizabeth, John, Rodney, Ronon and Teyla continued with the briefing; all hoping the crew survived the mission.

Teyla introduced a big heavy-duty bound book and placed it down in front of Dr. Weir. "Forty-eight days; that's how long we have before this thing becomes unstoppable."

"Why Forty-eight days?" Elizabeth asked.

"According to Dr. McKay's calculations. The darkness will reach Atlantis by then, and our only means of stopping it will be gone."

"On the assumption that it stays on its present course and speed." Rodney interrupted.

Teyla continued and turned the cover of the book, the picture underneath looked all too familiar to John. "The ancients had the only weapon that could defeat this evil...."

"The control chair?" He asked.

"No. That is a key to the weapon."

"…Four keys, gathered around a fifth, the Supreme Being the ultimate warrior, created to protect life. Together they produce, what the Ancients call the light of creation, able to bring life to the farthest reaches of the universe…"

"…But if evil stands in that circle."

"Then what?" Asked Ronon as Teyla turned to the next page.

"Then light turns to dark; life to death. Forever."

**TBC**

**Hope you liked? Please read and review... More coming soon!**


	3. Chapter 2 Water, fire, earth & air

Thank you for the reviews, Fitzroy, YunaDax, Erin87, Haruka83, jodz92 and Dr Rosemary Weir.

Apologies for wait I had writers block; I will endeavour to finish this story no mater how long it takes. So please bear with me.

Enjoy. Please R&R.

**Chapter Two – Water, Fire; Earth and Air**

"Four elements of life were created. Water, fire, earth, air…"

"They look like ZPM's?" Rodney pointed out. The drawings were clear enough for anyone to figure that out.

Teyla nodded. "Yes Dr. McKay. However, these ZPM's are different to the ones you use today. Each one contains special properties, each built for this purpose."

"What do we know about the fifth?" Elizabeth asked. "You did say five key's are needed."

"I presume that fifth is whoever operates the chair?"

John cheekily raised his hands. "We got the fifth."

"Okay, on the assumption, all this is true, which I have no reason to doubt. We have forty-eight days to locate all that we need, in order to stop this pending destruction. Any objections?" Elizabeth asked.

"One."

Elizabeth turned to face Ronon, whom had kept quiet up to this point.

"How are we supposed to find what we need within the allotted time?"

"The list of address at the back of this book might help." Telya turned the pages to reach them, ignoring all the intrigued stares from everyone in the room. "A chorological list of places, the Ancients frequently visited, in order to prepare for an event such as this."

Rodney was surprised, that the symbols spanned across so many pages. He reached for the book and pulled it towards him for a closer look.

John could see Rodney was obviously flabbergasted by this. The wealth of knowledge the gate address could provide them, would be next to nothing, compared to these two years of searching, already achieved by this expedition and to know now, the book had been on their doorstep all this time, was slightly frustrating. "You do know Teyla. This book could have provided us with the potential to get home sooner, had we known about it two years ago."

"I apologise for keeping the information from you all, but I have my reasons."

Lorne felt now was a good time to ask his nagging question. "Teyla. Why has this evil appeared now?

"Because three planets must be in an eclipse for the door to its universe to open. Like this planet is."

Elizabeth checked her watch, and recalled the date to the Earth calendar in her office. "Strangely enough, Earth should be in an eclipse at this precise moment too."

John glanced at her, impressed by the unexpected burst of knowledge, before turning to face Teyla. "Won't this thing. Whatever it is? Go home, once the eclipse is over?"

"No. The forces theses three planets provide whilst in a state of an eclipse are strong enough to sustain the doorway indefinitely, even after the eclipse's are over. A large amount of power is needed to neutralize this force and close the doorway."

"Earth's address is listed in this book." Blurted Rodney.

John pulled the book from Rodney to double-check. "It certainly is."

"The key's could be anywhere. Even your planet could hold one Dr. Weir."

"How many address, do we have in the book Dr. McKay?" Elizabeth asked.

"Take out the ones I know we have already visited, 101."

John pointed to the first address. "Guess we will start with 1. If we group the addresses, for each team and set a time limit for each search, it should cover ground a little quicker."

Elizabeth nodded agreeing to his plan. "Lets get to it, then. Dismissed."

All off-world team members left the room, giving Elizabeth a little time to unwind as they got themselves ready.

**TBC**


	4. Chapter 3 FortyThree Days Remaining

Thanks again for the reviews **jodz92, Haruka83 **and **Dr Rosemary Weir**. And to answer Dr Rosemary Weir's question. Four of the ZPM's are keys, but special ZPM's, not the usual ones they use. The fifth key/element is _someone _we know well;). Hope that helped?

Please read and review. Enjoy!

**Chapter Three: Forty-Three Days Remaining**

Five days gone and only twenty planets covered.

Elizabeth couldn't help but let out a sigh of desperation, before rubbing her hands over her face, in a vain attempt to clear the sleepiness from her eyes that was threatening to take hold.

She knew she should get some sleep, but, with their lives currently hanging on the end of a thread, it was getting harder to comply. Coffee was ideal for avoiding that situation and so she left her office to go to the mess hall, taking the book of the Ancients with her, which she had been researching.

--

Upon entering the empty darkened room, Elizabeth obtained her drink before sitting at a table, nearest the window. With the eclipse long ended, the stars now glittered in the cold night sky.

Opening the book, Elizabeth set about looking through it again; she may not be equipped to help out on the field, but at least should could try and limit the number of places her people need to visit, by checking the background of each gate address, for any possible leads.

--

Elizabeth's com-unit jolted her awake, causing a quick reflex in arm action; which resulting in knocking the cup over; accidentally, spilling the remaining contents inside it. She cursed under her breath as some liquid landed on the book. She was about to pull it away, before more damage could be done, when a back page suddenly glowed a bluish-green, on contact with the substance.

Her comm.-system buzzed again and Chuck's voice came on the line when she responded to it.

"_Ma'am Sheppard's team just radioed in. They've had a run in with the Genii and request immediate back-up."_

"Send reinforcements. I'm on my way back."

_Great, the Genii were the last thing they needed to deal with. _With the strange glow now vanished from the book, Elizabeth picked it up from the table. Intending to return to clean up the mess before the morning shift woke up. _I should get some proper sleep._ She thought to herself before leaving the room.

--

Escaping from enemy territory was never an easy task. Especially when it involved the Genii or the Wraith. On this occasion, it was the Genii.

John shot a few rounds, to provide cover for his team, as they escaped via the backend, of the burning 'Puddle Jumper,' he was just able to get a message to Atlantis in time, before they crashed and the controls fried.

The Genii had shot them clean out of the sky using alien technology unknown to them; they were now converging on their position. He needed to get his team to safety before they were caught or worse, killed.

They had landed in a barren forest, which seemed to be void of wildlife and the ground was thick with mud, which made it harder to run in. Thankfully it was daytime, so they could see clearly ahead despite the pouring rain.

Shoots were fired at them, from behind. John saw Rodney trip then fall, as the spray of bullets shot past them. Praying he wasn't hit, he quickly caught up with him; once he knew Rodney was okay he helped him to his feet. "Keep moving."

Ronon noticed the delay, and created covering fire for them. Teyla joined in, stopping once they had caught up and continued running.

Suddenly one of the Genii guards unexpectedly screamed in agony and John knew it wasn't from gunshot wounds, no one from their end had hit the opposition. He didn't want to hang about to discover the reason behind it and concentrate on the task ahead.

Unseen by anyone, the mud surrounding the stricken 'Puddle Jumper' started boiling and bubbling up, as a result the ship slowly sunk into the mud.

--

Elsewhere in the galaxy, Major Lorne's team had successfully retrieved a box of three powered ZPM's from an abandoned complex, used by the Ancients to store building material. Alas normal ZPM's but useful non the less. Lorne couldn't believe their luck, when they were found.

Laura and a fellow team member were carrying the box between them through the sandy desert back to the gate, when out of the blue a large comet blazed across the blue sky. Leaving a trail of thick smoke behind it.

All eight members of his team including Dr. Zelenka turned to face its falling destination. It created a large fireball on impacted; causing a plume of smoke and sand, erupt outwards towards them in a mad rush.

"RUN!" Lorne shouted as wind whistled around them.

The box of ZPM's was abandoned as everyone ran for the nearby gate.

**TBC**


	5. Chapter 4: Enemy Revealed

Thanks again for the reviews **jodz92, Dr Rosemary Weir **and** Haruka83**.

A little surprise in store for you all. Enjoy.

**Chapter Four: Enemy Revealed**

Coughing, Lorne dug himself out of the sand once the after-effects created by the meteor had cleared; it had created a powerful sandblast on impact and as a result he could see the entire landscape surrounding him, had changed formation, burying the gate and his team in the process.

He immediately began calling out their names, as he dug out an _Ancient Scanner_ device from his tac-vest.

It indicated a number of survivors dotted nearby, a small handful unaccounted for. He helped them without delay.

Four marines and Dr. Zelenka were now helping with the search. By this time, Lt. Cadman was still unaccounted.

"Over here!" Called Radek.

Dr. Zelenka was brushing sand away from Lt. Cadman's face, when Lorne reached him. "She's alive, I can't say the same for Davies though."

From their positions in the sand, it was clear Davies had shielded Laura and she became trapped underneath him. Together they rolled him off and brushed the sand from her face.

"What hit me?" Laura asked as she started to stir.

Without warning Laura sat up and spat out a mouth full of sand, narrowly avoiding Zelenka as he stepped back out the way.

Lorne handed her his canteen flask. "A sandblast, created by the meteor on impact."

She counted the number of people around her. "Who did we loose?"

"Judging by the scanner, a few marines and Lt. Davies. We also lost the gate."

"Great. Can this day get any worse?"

--

Miles from the crash site John, Teyla and McKay found themselves separated from Ronon.

"Looks like the diversion worked. We can rest here for a bit, long enough for me to treat that gunshot wound in your leg."

Supporting Teyla's weight John helped her sit down on a nearby rock. "It's just a scratch. I've had worse."

"Maybe. But it isn't helping us escape this place."

"We got company!" Called McKay minutes later, as they heard the snap of a twig in the near distance.

John quickly pulled Teyla up, and helped her round a nearby tree. Rodney followed.

It was a Genii soldier; he stopped to look around before his form changed into some hideous creature.

"Mangalore's." Breathed Teyla "Can't be. I thought their race was extinct."

"Who?" John asked.

"Mangalore's a race so old and merciless no man would challenge them."

"What changed?"

"Were they here before the Ancients?"

Teyla nodded to the latter question from Rodney and answered John's. "They disappeared from the skies when the Wraith appeared. It was thought they died out, after a long bloody confrontation between them."

"It would seem a handful survived."

"Yes. And I can't see them working for the Genii voluntarily unless something piqued their interest. Must be important enough for them to reveal themselves after so long."

"If they have the ability to shape-shift like we just witnessed, the Genii might not even know about them." John pointed out.

"Or. On this occasion, they are the Genii." Rodney added.

**TBC**

Well. I did say it was roughly based on the Fifth Element film:D.


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